A dentist who served his community for nearly five decades says he has been forced to shut up shop because of growing NHS¿bureaucracy.

Joshua Maslin, 71, bid an emotional farewell to the Newton Heath surgery he has run since 1963.

His decision to quit the Oldham Road practice leaves the deprived area without a single NHS dentist. Mr Maslin said a raft of government bureaucracy had made it impossible for him to continue on his own.

He said: “Every time I dispose of a piece of paper used to package equipment I’ve got to write it down, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

“It’s a million little things that end up costing dentists a lot of time when we could just be using our common sense.

“I feel like I’ve been forced out by raft after raft of new regulations, forms and inspections which only serve to give you less time with your patients.

“The thing I love most about my job is helping people, but the endless bureaucracy involved in running your own practice means you don’t get the chance to spend enough time at the coalface, which is harming patient care.”

Mr Maslin said the final straw had been a new requirement to register with the Care Quality Commission, which sets strict requirements for sterilisation, waste control and infection control.

He said it would have cost £20,000 to upgrade his surgery to meet the CQC’s regulations, which came into force on January 1.

Instead, Mr Maslin has decided to relocate to a shared practice in Ancoats – and shut his Newton Heath premises for the final time on December 30.

He said: “I’ve been in Newton Heath for 47 years now and it was an incredibly difficult decision to leave as I’m obviously very attached to the area and my patients.

“I’ll take away some fantastic memories. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed working in Newton Heath and am extremely fond of my patients.

“I could have retired a long time ago but I love what I do.

“As we were packing up one of my patients came stumbling through the door because he’d lost a filling so we unpacked what we needed and sorted him out.

“It was an emotional moment unscrewing my plaque off the door at the end of the day – it breaks my heart to be leaving, but it was really the only option left available to me.”

NHS Manchester said the move had been agreed with them to protect patient care.

A spokesman said: “Dental practices are being required to attain national quality standards which are monitored by the CQC.

“Mr Maslin, in partnership with NHS Manchester, identified the need for new premises to meet these standards so he could continue to provide NHS dental services to local people.”